Shiseido may have 147 years of history behind it, but when the Japanese beauty brand launches new products, you know they are going to feature fresh and exciting innovations. The latest launches from Shiseido, Synchro Skin Radiant Lifting Foundation and Synchro Skin Soft Blurring Primer, feature cutting-edge light-adjusting technology to address the three major obstacles that impede radiance: fine lines and wrinkles, uneven skin tone, and lack of collagen.        

Ukkiri, a Japanese term used to describe a hydrated, healthy, and almost incandescent complexion inspired the formulation of the new Shiseido foundation and primer. The foundation features a weightless, buildable formula infused with SPF 30, while the cream-to-powder primer was developed to sync seamlessly with any skin tone and minimize the appearance of pores and wrinkles. 

Recently, Spa & Beauty Today joined Shiseido to celebrate the new launch with a chat with Hunter Schafer and Shiseido Global Artistic Director James Boehmer. Schafer, an actress, artist, and activist, (known for her role playing Jules Vaughn on HBO’s Euphoria) is the brand’s latest Global Brand Ambassador. Her luminous complexion and incandescent energy made her a perfect fit to personify Shiseido’s belief that beauty comes alive when inner and outer beauty are in dynamic harmony. Before we get to the conversation, let’s take a look at what you should know about the new products. 

Synchro Skin Radiant Lifting Foundation, $47

Description: A medium-to full-coverage foundation that features light-adjusting technology to enhance radiance.

Shades: 30 

SPF: 30

Coverage: Buildable medium to full and designed to be smudge, transfer, and crease-resistant.

The Formula: A combination of transparent pearls, radiant microcrystals, and advanced optical filters balances and adapts to any ambient lighting condition, while an exclusive blend of humectants binds moisture to the skin for 24-hour hydration and all-day comfort. The formula contains collagen-supporting beech tree bud extract and vitamin C-rich mandarin peel extract.

Inspiration: Ki, the Japanese concept of life force energy that is in both animate and inanimate objects. Each shade name references a material commonly found in nature, architecture or design throughout Japan.

Synchro Skin Soft Blurring Primer, $36

Description: A weightless and water-based colorless primer that syncs seamlessly with all skin tones and uses advanced light diffusion technology to refine the appearance of pores, erase excess shine, and blur imperfections for a soft-focus finish.

Formula: A non-comedogenic, dermatologist-tested water-based cream-to-powder formula featuring mattifying peptides.

Shade: Colorless

What it does: Helps decrease sebum production and minimize the appearance of pores over time, prolongs makeup’s wear, scatters light to create a natural-looking glow, and smooths the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and rough skin.

Actress Hunter Schafer and Shiseido Global Artistic Director James Boehmer Chat about Synchro Skin Radiant Lifting Foundation

The conversation started out on the topic of the day, Radiant Lifting Foundation:

James: Hi, how is it going? Thanks for joining us today, Hunter! 

Hunter: Of course, I’m so happy to be here, thank you for having me.

James: Oh, I love what you are wearing—you look amazing! 

Hunter: Thank you so much. 

James: Oh, it is amazing, and it looks like you might be wearing Radiant Lifting Foundation today—is that true?

Hunter: Yes, and I feel very glowy and the light is hitting right, you know.

James: Before we get started, I would love to know just a little bit about your thoughts on makeup. What does it mean to you in general?

Hunter: I kind of had a fun journey with makeup in that it was something kind of out of necessity at first and really feeling like I really needed to play into looking a certain way or something. As I’ve gotten more comfortable with it, I think it’s become more in line with something with an artistic expression over the years, which is really how I like to work with it now. I’m just having fun with it and treating my face almost as I would treat my sketch book or something.

More highlights from the conversation:

Hunter on her partnership with Shiseido: “I’m so excited about it because as far from what I’ve seen, Shiseido has such a unique, exciting take on what it means to play with makeup or what it means to channel an artistic approach when putting on makeup.”

Hunter on the first thing she does in the morning: Turn on music. (She’s currently listening to the Kajillionaire soundtrack by Emile Mosseri.)

Hunter on her favorite artist of the moment: “I would say just based off the top of my head because I bought a book about her yesterday Aya Takano who is a painter—I’ve been obsessed with her recently…”

Hunter on one item she would bring to a desert island: Eyeliner. She is a fan of Shiseido’s Kajal InkArtist Eyeliner.

Hunter’s choice between mascara or lipstick: Mascara.

Hunter on when she feels most radiant: “I feel the most radiant when I’m in a space or a context when I really feel like I can just be myself and let myself shine through and even in a beauty context I would say, just when I am presenting in a way where I feel like I can shine through… I also think that’s why this foundation launch is so exciting just because it’s really important to me that you can see me under whatever I’m wearing and the foundation feels like I’m there, I’m present, you can see me through it .”

[Images courtesy of Shiseido]

Lizzy Sherman is an award-winning digital content writer/editor. She has been a featured guest speaker at Cal State University Northridge, Digital LA and The National Association of Audience Marketing Professionals. When she's not writing, Lizzy enjoys yoga and playing guitar. Follow her on Instagram: @zillizy